Family Time
by hook.that.bass
Summary: Set after 2x4 - Lily decides that she and Chuck should spend some family time together
1. Chapter 1

_Set sometime after 2x4 | I love Chuck and Lily's relationship on the show and thought that it would be nice if the two of them had more scenes. So here we go._

 _Tell me if you like it and if I should continue with the story? :)_

* * *

The breakfast table was all set up and Lily, Bart and Eric have already taken their seats as Serena joined them.

"Good morning, mom. Bart.", she chirped, clearly in a good mood as she sat down.

"Good morning, Serena, dear." greeted Lily. "Have you seen Charles yet?"

"Um, no." Serena just rolled eyes, even if she was secretly grateful that she wasn't the one showing up to the 'family breakfast'.

"I think he's still fast asleep. I mean it's a Sunday morning. Doesn't he usually have some shady so called 'business' at night? Eric?"

Eric held his hands up in defense. "I'm not aware of Chuck's plans for a Saturday night. And nor do I wish to, but I know for a certain that he wasn't home when I went to the bathroom at -"

Serena interrupted him hastily. "And that is definitely one information I don't wish to hear about while having breakfast."

Bart shortly looked up but then returned his attention to the business section of his newspaper.

Lily sighted and got up.

"Well then I will go looking for him. We wanted to spent Sunday mornings as a family and Bart and I have something to announce."

"Something to announce? What?", asked Serena curiously but Lily just waved in her direction. Later. Her daughter would have to wait until all members of the family were present.

She hesitated in front of her stepson's door He wouldn't bring any girls would he?

Lily could imagine more pleasant things than catching her stepson with some random girl.

She exhaled a deep breath and knocked softly on the thick wooden door.

"Charles?" She waited a few more seconds but when she didn't get any response she entered.

It took her eyes a while to adjust to the dark room. She heard Chuck's even breath before she saw the dark figure on his bed. Alone.

Lily smiled without noticing and went for the curtains to let the sun in the room. Then she turned around half expecting to meet Chuck's hazel eyes but he was still peacefully sleeping.

She would usually let him sleep but Bart would leave for work soon -even on a Sunday- and she wanted him to say his part of the announcement to Serena and Eric.

"Charles."

This time his eyes flattered open. He moaned and turned but then he realized that it was Lily who was waiting next to his bed. He had half expected it to be Serena. He thought she would probably do that as some kind of payback for his morningly visit last week.

Now he sat up. Good that he was usually taking the girls to his suite at the Palace.

"Anything wrong?", he asked and felt that he was still half asleep. He didn't even remember which time he got home last night. Apparently late.

"Long night?", she asked indulgent.

Chuck tried to smooth his strongly disheveled hair with one hand and shrugged careless.

"Just the usual business."

"Well, Charles, we are having our family breakfast right now. I thought you would like to join us."

"The alarm is set for 10."

"It's eleven."

Chuck glanced to the clock and rolled his eyes when he realized that she was right. Great. His alarm seemed to abandon him quite frequently. That or his sleep was deeper than he thought.

"I will be right there, Lily."

Lily nodded and left to give him some time to freshen up.

* * *

"Was Charles in his room?" Bart asked as she joined the rest of the family again. His eyes didn't leave the -apparently very captivating- article about them the stock market.

"Of course why wouldn't he?" Lily asked puzzled. Even if Charles was out on almost every night and returned quite late, he always came home. Or at least he always joined them for breakfast in the morning.

But Bart hadn't time to answer her because Chuck just entered the scene. Now wearing silk slippers and a purple dressing gown over his pajama, he nodded towards the table.

"Family."

"Chuck, finally!", exclaimed Serena as he sat down between her and Eric.

"I didn't know you've missed me that much, sis." He smirked and took a sip of his orange juice. Serena rolled her eyes while Eric giggled.

"Well mom and Bart have to make an 'announcement' that they couldn't make it without you and I'm late for my shopping trip with Blair.", she explained quickly.

"An announcement, huh? Sounds serious." Chuck said without much interest while putting some eggs Benedict on his plate.

"What kind of announcement is this now?", Eric asked. "Mom, whenever you have to announce something it's usually an engagement or a divorce. And this is clearly not a scene here is way too peaceful for that."

"Oh that's not true.", Lily exclaimed and shook her head in disbelief. "Actually it's that Bart and I decided that we want to do some activities that will merge us as a family."

"Activities? What's that supposed to mean?" Serena didn't sound so happy.

"Well, Bart took a day off next week-end and he will do something with you and Eric."

"There's a polo match outside the city and I thought it would be nice for us to attend it.", Bart added with a firm nod.

"So this is some kind of bonding time?" Serena asked skeptical and Lily nodded. "I'm sure you three will have lovely time."

Chuck was unusual quiet during that announcement. Lily gave him a scrutinizing look when Bart informed Serena and Eric about his plans. It wasn't always easy to read Chuck but she was sure she saw some kind of surprise and then something that she never expected from him - envy.

She didn't know what kind of moments Chuck and Bart shared in their past but judging his look it wasn't something like that.

But he was fast to regain his composure and seemed like he couldn't care less about it. Just the way he was rearranging the eggs on his plate and that he wasn't eating them anymore gave away how he must feel inside.

"But what about you?", Serena frowned. "And what about Chuck?"

"I'm sure you will deeply miss my company, sis.", Chuck drawled. "But fortunately I already have plans for the next weekend. Russian ballet. You can't imagine what they can do with their-"

"Ew, Chuck! Stop it!" Serena hit his arm in disgust which caused a smug expression on Chuck's face.

"Well cancel, Charles, because we will be occupied all day."

The smirk vanished as Chuck's attention went to Lily. He seemed almost startled. "What do you mean?", he finally asked.

"Serena, Eric and Bart will spent the day together and so will we. We thought that would be a great idea to merge the family."

Chuck frowned, looked to his father and then back to Lily's expectant face.

"What exactly is your plan for the day?", his eyes slightly narrowing in suspicion. "I'm certainly not the best companion for one of your beauty trips."

"Charles..." Bart admonished but Lily quickly interfered.

"Don't worry I don't want to place cucumber slices on your eyes."

Chuck snorted amused. "So what is the plan then?"

"Yeah mom, what is the plan?" Serena was curious too. A polo match wouldn't be her first choice but maybe it could be fun, even if she still found that Bart's icy blue eyes could be very scary sometimes. But what on earth would someone do to have fun with Chuck Bass? Well especially if that someone was her mother - his stepmother- and not a member of the the Russian ballet ... or her best friend.

"You will have to wait." Lily said with a cryptic smile. "I want it to be a surprise."

With that she rose from her chair. But turned around before she left.

"Oh and Charles? Don't you dare set your PI on me. He won't find out anything about my plans."

"That option never even occurred to me, Lily." Chuck replied in his most charming way while he let go of the cell in his pocket. There were other ways to find out. He wasn't Chuck Bass for nothing.

* * *

 _Review?_


	2. Chapter 2

_So here's the next chapter of my little Chuck and Lily fic. It's not really dramatic but Chuck deserves to have a nice time! ;)_

 _I hope you enjoy the story!_

* * *

While Lily did her best in the following week to keep her plans hush-hush, Chuck did his best to reveal them. But as much as he hated to admit it, Lily did a great job keeping things secret so that by the end of the week he was still completely clueless.

"Be sure to remember that this is a polo match and not a pony farm, sis. You can't ride the horses. Or anyone else." Chuck drawled as Serena joined Eric and Bart in the elevator. "Thank you, Chuck!", she replied annoyed. "You know how much I value your advice."

"You do, huh? Then I suggest-"

"Don't even go there!" Serena smacked his arm but only smirked.

"You know you will miss our little sibling squabbles."

Serena rolled her eyes. "You wish." she said with a snort.

Chuck already had a response on the tip of his tongue but was interrupted by Lily who joined them with a large hat in her hands.

"Serena don't forget your hat."She handed it to Serena, hugged Eric quickly and gave Bart a light kiss on the cheek.

"Enjoy your day!"

Serena and Eric said goodbye and Bart just nodded in Chuck's direction. Of course he had already given him the 'Behave yourself' speech because if Chuck spent a day with Lily he would naturally destroy his father's marriage.

Then the elevator doors closed and it went quiet in the Van der Woodsen/Bass penthouse.

"So ... What's the plan?" Chuck asked.

"At first we will get ready and have a little brunch at the Palace."

"That's your great bonding idea, Lily? Brunch? Not that imaginative."

"Well, Charles, I figured you won't mind starting the day with some food in your system. Besides, Alfonso specially made éclairs for you. You do like them, don't you?"

"I do.", said Chuck puzzled. How could Lily possibly know about his weakness for delicious éclairs?

* * *

And those éclairs were excellent as expected. Alfonso knew how Chuck liked his favorite pastry.

"Well that was a nice brunch." Lily said cheerful as she put the napkin next to her now empty plate. "What do you think, Charles?"

"Oh, it was absolutely delicious, Lily. I bet your genius was behind this extraordinary selection of food." Chuck said with his usual smarminess.

"And you're right." A flattered smile lightened up her face. "I've talked to Alfonso beforehand and we picked only the things you would like."

Chuck smiled in surprise as he heard that. People usually didn't put much thought into his likings. He always had to take care of these things on his own. Now that was definitely a nice new experience.

After they finished the brunch Lily ushered Chuck to his limo. Of course she had already informed Arthur about their next destination so Chuck was still completely clueless. Not that he liked this feeling but he slowly started to put some trust into Lily. Her day seemed to be planned out very well.

When the limo pulled up in front of a large building on 5th he quirked an eyebrow and turned to Lily.

"Really? You want to go shopping with me? I know that my fashion advice is valued a lot but you don't have to secretly drag me here. All you need to do is ask."

"This is just a preparation.", she explained. "We need to be properly dressed. I've already put my dress on hold so you don't have to spend hours to look at women's clothing "

"But you want to spend hours looking at suits?" Chuck felt amused. He would have never imagined himself in a situation like this. "Unlike my father I need more then ten minutes to pick the perfect suit. Not to mention the accessories."

"Oh, I am well aware of that fact, Charles." Lily chuckled amused. "I still remember the day you went out to buy a suit for the White Party. You left after breakfast and came back for dinner."

Chuck rolled his eyes. "It's not that easy to find a proper white suit and it was even harder to find the right shoes. Impossible actually. I had to import them from Italy."

"So I guess it's good that I already picked out a few suits for you?" Lily now left the limo and flashed a short smile at Arthur who held the door open for them. Chuck followed suit.

"You picked out suits for me?" He felt completely and utterly shocked.

It wasn't that Lily had a horrible taste when it comes to clothing, it was just that he always had to go shopping on his own. Or well, maybe with the help of a few personal shoppers but that was all. Even back in kindergarten. His nannies would always chose hideous things, Bart was too busy with the company, Nate still let his mom make the decision on his wardrobe and he never wanted to ask the girls.

Now that Lily took some time to look at suits and think about what he would like he wasn't sure how he should feel about it.

"It was a challenge to figure out what you might like. Your style is very ... unique." Lily smiled at him. "Just pick out your favorite and the tailors will take the final measurements."

* * *

It turned that Lily had actually a good eye when it came to suits. There was no way he could choose just one suit so he settled for four of them.

What got him even more excited was that Bergdorf's had received the newest bow tie collections. He just couldn't walk past them without taking a peek. And as Lily joined him and started holding up several bow ties to discuss their colors and patterns with him he felt a content smile tugging at the corners of his lips. Impossible but he was really enjoying this afternoon.

Was that the reason Serena and Blair always went out together? Because it was better to talk about possible looks than to just think about them?

He should probably consider to drag Nate with him after all. He knew his best friend wasn't interested in fashion but he maybe he could come up with a plan to activate Nate's fashionable side...

Chuck also picked out a few pocket squares and two pairs of shoes and persuaded Lily to buy a pair of gorgeous Jimmy Choo's that she was ogling with.

Finally at the end of their little shopping trip he pulled out his wallet and retrieved one of his credit cards to pay for everything but Lily stopped him.

"Don't." she said. "I will pay for everything, of course."

"You don't have to." he objected but Lily already handed her own credit card over.

"I know." she said smiling. "But I always pay when I go shopping with my kids. That's the reason Serena loves to that with me by the way." She said that in a casual manner, her main attention obviously on the shop assistant with her credit card so she didn't really expect an answer and Chuck was too startled to give her one.

Even if Lily had said those words without thinking, or maybe for that reason alone, they caused a warm feeling in his chest. A feeling that he hadn't felt for a while now and never in the same way.

Had she really just said 'her kids' and included him? He didn't know how it feels to have a mother. Lily was the closest he had to that. He knew that. And right now he decided that he liked that a lot.

* * *

 _Not the longest chapter ever I know. But this is more of a short story._

 _I think I need one more chapter to finish the story. Pls review. I'd love to hear what you think. :)_


	3. Chapter 3

_Finally, my last chapter is up. And it turned out longer than I thought, so enjoy! :)_

* * *

After they left Bergdorf's Lily suggested to go somewhere and have dinner but Chuck had a sudden idea. Why had Lily to be the only one who came up with surprises today?

Of course he asked her first. Nothing was further from his mind than crossing her plans. But when she agreed and assured him that there was still some time he gave Arthur a change of destination.

* * *

"Now what is this, Charles?" Lily asked bewildered when they stepped out of the limo. "I thought you didn't want to have a spa day."

"It is not necessarily the same." Chuck said elusively.

"But it is a spa. Don't try to fool me, Charles. A lifetime of spa visits taught me to recognize one when I see it."

"Oh, I would never try to fool you, Lily. What I was trying to say is that they don't offer treatments with cucumber slices therefore we can safely enter."

"And I was just starting to believe you secretly love cucumbers." Lily teased which irritated Chuck a little but not enough to hold back one of his trademark comments. "I actually prefer the kind of treatment that includes hot chocolate along with a whiff of the far east." He smirked meaningful. Those comments would usually earn him an eye roll from Serena (not that he had any intention to annoy his stepmother) but from Lily he got a chuckle. Interesting.

"You will love this place." he assured her and then added. "This is were I get my weekly afternoon shiatsu. Preferably by the asian twins by the way. But since I'm sure this is not something you'd like to see I will just have someone else today."

Lily smiled mildly. "Thank you, Charles. I really do appreciate the sacrifices you make for me today."

Chuck grinned and decided to ignore the small trace of irony that he had just heard in his stepmother's voice.

"I heard this place offers a fine treatment by male twins as well." he drawled suggestively. "Not that I tried them yet but maybe you'd like to check it out. And fill me in afterwards."

This made Lily laugh again. Of course she knew that her stepson was only joking but she found herself to enjoy his antics quite a lot. It was surprisingly refreshing.

"I don't think that's necessary. But a normal massage does sound lovely to me. Exactly what I need after this shopping trip."

Chuck smirked satisfied and followed her inside. He knew he had a good idea.

* * *

They had a short dinner and returned home afterwards.

It was now early evening and according to Lily time to get ready for the actual event.

Chuck was standing in his room, looking at the new suits that were laid out on his bed.

He hated it when he didn't know what to dress up for. The only clue Lily gave him was black tie. Hm. An idea came to him and he quickly retrieved his cellphone from his pocket to check on Gossip Girl if there were any galas or other black tie events today. But he only found some freshmen parties. Nothing that caught his interest.

Frustrated he threw his phone on the bed and went for the black suit. That was a classic choice and would work with any possible black tie event.

The look was completed with a pastel purple bow tie and a an aubergine pocket square.

A content smirk spread across his face as he watched his reflexion in the mirror. Perfect.

When he joined a dressed up Lily he living room he took her hand placed a light kiss on it - just like he did once at the breakfast table, before her wedding to Bart.

"If I may say, you look marvelous, Lily." He said in his most charming manner.

Lily was dressed in a long emerald robe along with a diamond necklace and a silver clutch in her right hand.

"You may", she said flattered as always by his charming attitude. "And I can only return the compliment. You look dashing, Charles."

Now it was Chuck's turn to smile but he cleared his throat hastily to get back into his usual swagger. Chuck Bass usually didn't fall for compliments so easily. So he gestured Lily towards the elevator, eager to find out what she had planned for him.

* * *

They arrived at the MET. And Lily seemed so excited she literally pushed him through the doors. Meanwhile Chuck was racking his mind for the opera calendar. If he remembered correctly they were showing 'The Magic Flute' this month. A children's opera. Lily couldn't possibly be wanting to watch this with him. Than she must mistake him with a six year old.

Chuck decided to get to the bottom of it as they gave up their coats at the wardrobe. "The opera huh? I didn't know you were aware of my penchant for drama."

Lily rose her eyes brows and replied. "Oh, we're not here for the opera, Charles. They're currently showing 'The Magic Flute' which is mainly for kids. We're both past that I believe, or do you think differently."

"Oh, I can't object, Lily. You are perfectly right as always." Chuck replied smoothly.

"I figured. And we're actually here for a concert so I doubt you will see any drama today. Or at least not in the way you might have imagined." She smiled teasingly and then added. "But they are showing 'Tristan and Isolde' next year. In January. So if you'd like to go there I will make sure to get tickets in time."

"Sounds perfect to me." Chuck murmured in thought and then asked. "What kind of concert is this exactly?"

"Why don't you wait and let it be a surprise?"

"I'm only asking because I have a very particular taste in music. Nathaniel once dragged me to a concert of one of his favorite bands and to say it ended badly would be an understatement."

Lily snickered and took Chuck gently by his elbow to lead him into the right box.

"That's a story I'd really love to hear one day. But for now let me assure you that there's nothing to worry about. The pianist we're about to see is very reputable."

"I never doubt you're impeccable taste, Lily. You're -" Chuck hesitated, processing the words that he had just heard. "Pianist?" he uttered in surprise. "How -?" How could Lily possibly know that he had a special liking for piano music?

"I just thought you might find this enjoyable, Charles." she said waving off her hand. "I see you at the Palace bar sometimes, clearly ogling at the piano and Bart mentioned that you used to play so I figured-"

"My father mentioned that?" Chuck interrupted her in disbelief. He couldn't remember one single time Bart actually listened to him playing. And when he got the key to his suite there was no piano inside. It was obvious that Bart hadn't put any thought into his likings and Chuck never really dared to go up to the penthouse suite to play on the instrument that had been degraded to mere decoration.

Lily frowned slightly while she observed Chuck's reaction. She was sure she sensed something in his brown eyes.

Bart had told her that Chuck simply lost interest in playing the piano but then why would he look at the piano at the Palace bar with a glimpse of desire in his eyes?

"Or do you you still play?" Lily enquired curious to hear his version of the story.

But Chuck had already regained his composure so he just drawled, with a careless wave of his hand. "Even if I felt the desire to do so I couldn't. There's no instrument available in your apartment."

"Our apartment. It's the family's home. Not mine alone." she reminded him gently.

"But, Charles, I didn't know you missed something. If this is what you want then I'm sure we can arrange something." She squeezed his hand in assurance.

But Chuck's eyes averted to the stage where the curtain was rising to reveal a perfectly polished beautiful black piano.

"I am absolutely fine." he said silently while leaning back in his seat. "Besides, I know that a piano doesn't work with your room concept and my own room is lacking space." It was a simple statement, no accusation.

"Let's just drop this subject and enjoy the show." Chuck said with his eyes fixed on stage.

The pianist was now entering the scene to sit down in front of his instrument. He stretched his fingers dramatically and began to play.

Lily leaned back as well and looked thoughtfully at the stage.

Chuck was right. He usually was, Lily thought.

She had just redecorated and a piano didn't fit into the new interior concept. But maybe they could make some minor changes ... Lily wasn't quite sure but decided to call her interior designer first thing in the morning. There must be a way.

Now she worried that bringing up this subject may have ruined Chuck's good mood. But when she looked asquint at him she found him watching the concert mesmerized, a small smile playing around his lips.

Lily let out a relieved breath that she wasn't aware of holding. She was quite pleased to see that her idea of visiting this concert was so well received. Because it had taken her some time to figure out the right thing. She actually had to sneak into his room (not that she would ever admit it). And as she saw the size of his closet she immediately had the shopping idea. The plan of going to this concert came to her when Lily found a few classical CD's in one of his drawers - right next to a brown paper bag with premium hash. She had inspected it interested but put it back afterwards. Who knew when it might come in handy to know where he stashed it.

They didn't talk much during the concert. Chuck just commented on the songs or the way the pianist played them. Always with a delighted sparkle in his eyes. Lily didn't always understand it but nodded happily.

* * *

"Lily, I have to say." Chuck said in the elevator when they were on the way back to the penthouse. "You've outdone yourself with this day. I couldn't have expected it any better."

The elevator stopped and the doors opened with a bell to let Chuck and Lily walk into the Van der Woodsen/Bass apartment.

"Thank you for saying this, Charles."

Lily stopped at the kitchen counter to lay down her clutch and step out of her shoes. "I'm glad you liked it."

"It definitely makes up for my missed date with the Russian ballet." Chuck assured her.

Lily looked around in the apartment. It looked like Bart and the kids were still not home yet which gave her some more time with Chuck.

"Now there is one more thing we need to do to finish this day properly."

Chuck only raised his eyebrow in question. He was used to comments like this or usually was the one making them but since he was facing his stepmother he decided to pass on one of his sleazy comebacks.

Lily waved towards the living area. "Just get comfortable on the sofa, Charles. I'll get everything we need."

"With pleasure." Chuck muttered under his breath. Lily didn't cease to surprise him today.

* * *

Serena was quite glad the 'bonding-day' with Bart was over.

Well, it wasn't as bad as expected but it wasn't good either.

Turned out that Bart struggled to have non-business related conversations. Especially easy going talks with his step kids. Or actual kid, Serena added bitterly in her mind. Now that she had to live with the Basses she saw how less Bart and Chuck talked. She noticed attempts on Chuck's side but never on Bart's.

Anyway, things were a tiny bit awkward at the polo match. Bart actually bought them lemonade. Serena and Eric just exchanged confused glances at this. He didn't think they were seven, did he?

It was kinda boring to just stand there and watch the horses with Bart.

Serena actually caught herself thinking that Chuck's sleazy comments would totally lighten up the mood. Not that she would ever tell him! It was very possible that he might use this against her some day.

Of course Bart noticed that his sad attempts in having a conversation were pretty much failing. So when he spotted one of his business associates he engaged in business-talk with him which left Serena and Eric alone. Staring at the horses, lemonade in hand.

Naturally she felt relieved when they arrived home. This torture of a family bonding day was finally over!

Now she had time to wonder how Lily and Chuck's day went. Probably not much better, she assumed. Her mom wasn't exactly parent of the year and it was also very likely that Chuck ruined everything by dragging her mother in one of his shady strip clubs. But if she thought about it, seeing her mom in one of those places might actually be fun. She would definitely check Gossip Girl for photos later.

Imagine her surprise when Serena stepped out of the elevator (Bart and Eric right behind her) and spotted Chuck and Lily in the living room.

All three stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of Chuck and Lily chatting, laughing and bantering on the couch, all while eating ice cream from a large box on the couch side table.

They were obviously having a great time, not even noticing the three newcomers.

Bart was the first one to react. He stepped forward and cleared his throat noticeably.

"Dad" was Chuck's surprised reaction and Lily jumped up to greet them all.

"Serena, Eric, Bart. You three are back early."

 _Early?_ Serena thought appalled. It's not early when you have to live through a three course dinner with mentioned associate and Bart after the polo match. She couldn't wait to complain to Blair about the hole day on the phone later.

"But tell us how was your day?" Lily looked at them full of expectation while Chuck joined the group. Hands in his suit pockets, smirk in place.

 _Where were they?_ Serena was quite startled as she noticed their black tie outfits. That clearly did not scream strip club at her.

"It turned out satisfactory." was Bart's business like answer. Chuck's knowing smirk only deepened. Of course he knew what that meant.

"Yeah, it was - _nice_." Affirmed Serena maybe a little too loud and with a trace of irony that no one seemed to notice.

Eric just murmured. "Lovely"

"So" Serena started. "What were you two up to?"

Eric joined her immediately. "Yeah,you can't keep this a secret forever."

Chuck and Lily exchanged a short secretive look which irritated Serena a lot.

"Why don't you join us and then we can exchange our stories." Lily suggested and motioned towards the sofa.

Of course Bart interjected. "I'm sure we will have time for this tomorrow morning. Right now I have some calls to make and I'm sure the kids are tired anyway."

Lily seemed contradicted but Chuck spoke up. "Maybe father's right, Lily. You know people say you should stop when it can't get any better. I think we've reached that point."

Lily nodded sighting. "Maybe you're right, Charles."

"Besides, I will need to regain my strength now because I didn't cancel my my appointment with the Russian ballet girls, I simply rescheduled. It's tomorrow." He shot Serena an expectant look but she only gave him a warning glance back.

"That sounds lovely, Charles. You have to tell me how it went afterwards." said Lily. Serena frowned.

"Oh, definitely." Chuck wanted to give Lily another kiss on the hand before he retreated for the night but she pulled him into an embrace instead.

Serena's jaw dropped at that. She turned to Eric but he just shrugged. Looked like their day turned out a lot better than theirs. Not that Serena felt the urge to do this with Bart.

Chuck was caught off-guard by Lily's sudden display of affection. He didn't exactly know how to react but then decided to hug her back. Shortly. And freed himself quickly. He was Chuck Bass after all and he couldn't really relish her touch in front of Serena, Eric and Bart.

Or well, Bart was occupied with his phone. He probably didn't even notice what was going on.

Chuck now nodded to everyone around. "Family. Father." he said. "Have a good night." He nodded again an then disappeared into his room. He was so eager to do this, he even forgot to ask Serena if she missed him. Luckily he could do that tomorrow as well.

* * *

Lily was still wide awake when Bart climbed into the bed later that night.

"Bart?"

"Lily?" Bart actually sounded a little surprised. "I thought you were asleep."

"I have been thinking." She turned to him.

"About what?"

"Us. And the kids." Bart suppressed a groan. What now?

"You don't think the day was a success? Did Chuck-"

"Everything was fine." Lily assured him quickly. "More than that. I didn't have such a nice day in a while."

Bart was taken aback a little but didn't say anything so Lily went on.

"I just thought if we're really serious about making us all family there is one more thing we need to do."

"If this is about another day that we should all spend together then I have to disappoint you. I'm in Shanghai for business next week."

"Oh." Lily didn't know that. "No, I'm talking about something else. I think you should legally adopt Serena and Eric and I will legally adopt Charles."

Bart didn't know what to say for a moment. "Are you serious?" he finally asked.

"I've never been more serious about anything." Lily assured him. Bart looked at her in suspicion but then nodded in agreement. "Alright. I will call my lawyers tomorrow. And if Serena and Eric really want that I'd love to adopt them." He hesitated for a moment. "But you don't have to adopt Chuck. I know he can be challenging sometimes."

"Are you kidding?" Lily sounded offended. "No, I love Charles. Of course I will to do that."

Bart only rose an eyebrow. "Alright. Then I'll set up the documents. It's settled I guess."

"It's settled." Lily repeated in confirmation and leaned back into her duvet. Bart couldn't see it in the dark but she smiled contently.

* * *

 **Spotted: Looks like our new favorite family split up for the day.**

 **And while S and E looked a little bored attending polo business meetings with Big Bad Bart outside the city, Lily and C looked more than happy to fill one shopping bag after another at Bergdorf's and attending the MET afterwards. All dressed up and arm in arm.**

 **Looks like one happy little family to me. Or at least one half.**

 **You know you love me, XOXO, Gossip Girl.**

* * *

 _So that was it. I hope you all liked the story. I was thinking about adding an epilogue about Lily getting Chuck mentioned piano but I liked this ending better. (But it could be material for another short fic ;))_

 _Also I wanted to thank you for all your lovely reviews. They're a great encouragement to keep writing. So thank you! :)_

 _And pls also tell me what you think about the final chapter._

* * *

 _LonelyGirlWritesToPlease thanks for saying that. I really tried to meet each characters individual speech so I'm glad to hear that I kind of succeeded. You're comment kinda made my day. ;)_


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